Even if you're a corrupted magical girl, you still have to try to redeem yourself.

However, Helica's focus right now is not on Nishio Reki's little tricks.

Nishio Reki was making these little gestures as he spoke.

"But have you ever thought about it? It's precisely because there's such a dangerous place underground at the Holy Age Academy that it's like a time bomb that could explode at any moment. We can't wait until it explodes before taking remedial action."

There was a bomb there, but Helica had a strong intuition that her target was the people in front of her.

No, I still have to say something.

"But think about it, wasn't it yesterday..."

Helica was rambling incoherently when she suddenly grasped a clue, and her thoughts became clearer.

“Yes! You just went there yesterday, Yuuki Yui, didn’t you? Are they stupid? Do they think they can just wait for us to come and investigate without any precautions? Of course not! They’re definitely on high alert and waiting for us.”

The others should have expected the enemy to be on high alert, and Helica's point of view was exactly what they should be worried about. Suddenly, the wind began to shift in Helica's favor.

"Then what do we do? We can't just sit still because the enemy might be on high alert, can we?" Yuuki Yui glanced around the room at the people, her tone more like a question than a request for advice.

But Helica had already figured out how to answer, and a sudden flash of inspiration led her to the best solution.

"We can't go because they'll be wary of us, but shouldn't the original students of St. Eternal Academy not have this problem?"

They wanted to investigate that dangerous place and obtain enough information, but they couldn't let Yuuki Eri or Nishio Koki, who might be the owners of the dream, go. As for the NPC characters in the dream, they were even less reliable.

It seems that besides that white-haired mad dog, Shanbaqi, there is no one else who is capable of conducting investigations, reliable, and unlikely to arouse suspicion.

Even Herika, who was so resistant to Baki, felt that it would be no problem to give this task to Baki.

"You mean, Inuyama-kun?" Nishio Reki immediately realized what Helica meant.

"Yes, I'm talking about her. She's the best candidate I can think of!"

"You think there shouldn't be any problems with students from St. Yonyou Academy walking around the school?"

"I accidentally discovered something strange at school. It shouldn't be a problem to go in and take a look, right?"

"She also knows about magical girls, and she's had the least interaction with us, so she's less likely to arouse suspicion. Even if something really happens, Inuyama Tomoe can find a way to explain it, right?"

Herlica's series of rhetorical questions left the others speechless.

To be fair, letting Baki do it was indeed the best choice, and this is not Helica making excuses.

As for the danger, it was there from the beginning, and even if Yuuki and the others went together, they could not avoid the danger.

The only question now is who will take the risk.

The magical girls were somewhat reluctant to entrust this important task to Baqi, an ordinary person.

After all, involving ordinary people goes against the principles of magical girls.

However, from the very beginning when she needed to understand St. Yūkyū Academy, Yuuki Yuuki had already dragged Tomoe into it.

Therefore, while it's not impossible for Yuuki Yukino to oppose Helica's proposal now, it would lack persuasiveness.

“You’re right, it’s definitely the best thing to do to give it to Inuyama Tomoe.” Finally, Yuuki Yuuki, who had been persuaded, sighed.

"Right!"

Hearing that Yuuki Yukino's tone had softened, Helica could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

As long as Yuuki Yuuki doesn't personally explore that church, everything is fine.

"Then I'll contact Inuyama-kun right now?" Nishio Reki took out his phone and asked the others in a requesting tone.

“No need! I can handle it! Leave it to me!” Helica immediately interrupted.

Under the skeptical gazes of the others, Helica had no choice but to complain a few times.

"Don't worry, I can handle this! If we encounter danger, we can just have Inuyama Tomoe retreat first, right? I understand, I understand! I'll explain everything clearly!"

That's what Helika said, and that's what she did with absolute confidence.

And he did it immediately. After the group disbanded, he went straight to Inuyama Tomoe and told her about it in person.

"Beneath that garden maze, there should be a strange church hidden. What you need to do is tell me as much information about that church as possible, and then we can discuss how much of it we can tell Yuuki Yukino."

"No problem, leave it to me! It's just a church! Even if we run into Saint Shiyin inside, I won't be afraid."

After hearing Inuyama Tomoe's confident assurance, Helica felt relieved and boldly led Yuuki and the others to celebrate Christmas.

However, this Christmas is destined to be anything but ordinary.

Hours later, when Herika saw the message that Inuyama Baki had sent her, she felt a sudden darkness before her eyes.

"Damn it, I accidentally killed Kuroba Reincarnation!"

Chapter 157 Threat

Inuyama Tomoe is a student at Seiyuu Academy and is quite familiar with the academy.

Even setting aside the fact that she continued to study at St. Yuu Academy in her dream, she had spent nearly two years at St. Yuu Academy before transferring to Moonsea Middle School in reality.

The Garden Maze has always been a landmark building at St. Yonyu Academy. Even before Baqi officially enrolled, she had heard that such a place existed at St. Yonyu Academy.

Baqi herself wasn't particularly sensitive to magic, perhaps because she had difficulty perceiving the magic of other magical girls in her dreams, so she didn't sense anything amiss at St. Yuu Academy.

However, Yuuki Yuki did sense it, but not in a dream; rather, she mentioned it repeatedly in reality.

“There must still be something at St. Yuu Academy. I don’t know if it’s related to Mashiro’s return, but the ominous magic I felt as soon as I entered the school gates makes me very worried.”

Yuuki Yukino once mentioned this to Tomoe, but that was before Yumehara Sumireko made her formal attack.

That is, the time when everyone went to the library of Seiyuu Academy to find out what content Seiyuu Academy had hidden, and when Gonno Ken Mashiro stuffed a book into the library.

Later, when Yuuki Yuuki, because Sakura Hanako and Koumari had fallen into a deep sleep one after the other, took the initiative to approach Uroken Mashiro and launched a fake attack on St. Yuuki Academy, she mentioned something similar to Tomoe.

Even though Yuuki had mentioned it to Baqi more than once, Baqi still couldn't sense anything.

Baqianqi didn't speculate about what might exist beneath the garden maze.

In any case, she was determined to investigate thoroughly, prepared to encounter obstacles, and then find out the truth. This was a more effective way to uncover the secret than to guess.

As a member of the St. Eternal Academy, it was naturally incredibly easy for Baqi to enter the academy.

Although today is not only Christmas but also a weekend, some students do not intend to enjoy the holiday and instead stay at school to continue studying. The administrators at the school gate will not stop each student who wants to enter the school to ask for their reasons.

Ba Qi was still the top student in her grade, so the administrator had no reason to stop her.

She entered the school with ease, and looking at the empty square in front of her, Baqi felt a little uncomfortable.

If I had to say I was nervous, I was a little nervous. My investigation might very well be related to the success or failure of the dream, as well as the secrets hidden in the real world of St. Eternal Academy. It was impossible for Baqi to complete this task with a calm mind.

But Baqi's goal was surprisingly clear. Before she arrived, the blond-haired dwarf had made it very clear that the place she needed to investigate was below the garden maze. In short, she should go to the garden maze first.

St. Yonyou Academy's campus isn't particularly large, and it's nowhere near as big as a university, but for a secondary school, such a vast area is still quite impressive.

After some time, Inuyama Tomoe finally arrived at the entrance to the garden maze. The high walls blocked Tomoe's view, making it impossible for her to see what had happened inside.

According to what the blond dwarf said, Yuuki Yukina directly smashed a large hole in the top of that mysterious hollow, revealing the Great Cathedral below.

So you have to get into the maze first, right?

With that thought in mind, Baqi stepped into the maze without the slightest hesitation.

Time was precious to her, and she had considerable confidence in her abilities. There was no need to hesitate now that she was already at her destination.

Many students from St. Yūkyū Academy also visit the Garden Maze. As a popular attraction at St. Yūkyū Academy, it would definitely be even more bustling than Baqi knows if the school didn't regularly maintain it and refuse entry to outsiders.

It's incredible that not a single person among so many discovered the secret beneath the St. Eternal Academy Garden Maze, or rather, that such a huge secret was so openly hidden underground.

Is this what they mean by "the truly wise live in seclusion in the city"?

Hedges, roses, sunflowers... all sorts of plants, along with sculptures and fountains placed inside the maze, make up this not-so-complex maze.

Since it was already winter, all the flowers had withered and were buried under thick snow along with the empty pool. Only the paths inside the maze had been carefully cleared.

Baqi wasn't particularly interested in the garden maze, having only visited a few times. It seemed that the garden maze in winter had a unique charm.

However, Bachi's purpose was not to admire the beauty of the garden maze, but to follow the maze's paths and quickly weave through the snow-covered hedges.

There was something that Baqi couldn't understand: last night, Yuuki Yuuki clearly caused considerable damage here—she even ripped off the roof of the Grand Cathedral—yet the St. Yūgyu Academy made no comment whatsoever.

Up to now, Baqi hasn't heard any news. If Helica hadn't told her about it, Baqi might not even know what Yuuki Yuki had done here.

Even if they wanted to hide it, shouldn't the school administration of St. Yuu Academy or the church where St. Shion is located have pretended to seal it off before making repairs?

But no, not at all. Baqi walked in with incredible ease, without any obstacles in her path.

The surroundings were eerily quiet, making Baqi wonder if she had been transported to a completely different world at some point.

Baqi continued walking, observing her surroundings; everything seemed normal.

Apart from the fact that the snow on the ground had been cleared.

It snowed for a long time last night, and if no one had cleared it, Baqi would have left a trail of footprints behind her.

The snow had been cleared away, which was enough to prove that someone had been there, and that person or those people must have known what had happened here, yet remained silent.

Were they school staff? Or church people? Or perhaps one of those strange nuns?

Baqi continued walking along the road, lost in thought.

In the very center of the maze, there is a small pavilion that is perfect for holding a tea party. The interior of the pavilion has been cleaned, but there are no signs of use.

The surroundings were so quiet and ordinary that even the usually calm Baqi couldn't help but wonder if the short, blond guy was just making up some excuse to play a trick on her.

But if you think about it carefully, that underground cathedral certainly didn't appear out of thin air. Even if the builder was stupid, he wouldn't have put the entrance in the open.

It seems that it will take me quite some time to find out the truth today.

But perseverance pays off; without using the power of a magical girl, the huge hole that Yuuki Yukino smashed yesterday could not be completely repaired in one day.

After some effort, Inuyama Tomoe finally found the irregular hole, which was several meters in diameter.

In her view, it wasn't that there wasn't time to repair it, but rather that there was no trace of repair at all.

But this is just right. With this target, even if we return to reality, Baqi is confident that she can find this place.

Now, after exploring a bit and seeing what's inside, my mission will be completely complete.

As Baqi pondered this, she walked to the vicinity of the hole and peered into it through the sunlight streaming down from the sky.

It was pitch black below, and even with the light filtering in, Baqi could hardly tell what was going on inside.

Moreover, Yuuki Enishi was thrown down directly, and after causing a little commotion inside, she flew out through this hole. What can be seen is mostly cracked ground and broken stones.

If you don't go inside and take a look, it will be difficult to get more information.